PAST SHOWS
A Perfect Ganesh
Date: March – May 2008
A seductive comedy about two suburban women who travel to India and discover the unexpected.
Genre: Drama
Two friends…
Phizzical Productions & South Asian Touring Theatre Consortium, present, A Perfect Ganesh, the Pulitzer Prize nominated show, by Terrence McNally, one of America’s most gifted playwrights.
A Perfect Ganesh is a seductive comedy about two middle-aged suburban women, who travel to India, and discover the unexpected. ‘Prim’ Margaret Civil and ‘Outspoken’ Katherine Brynne abandon their annual vacation ritual and purchase a holiday package to India.
Both women have secret dreams of “the fabled land of the exotic” and are looking for spiritual comfort to alleviate the suffering they hide within. Set during the early 1990s, before India’s economic liberalization took hold, the women discover that the environment of the country: its heat, poverty, culture and philosophy challenges them to examine their own lives and confront unresolved issues from their past. The trip also provides an opportunity for them to face up to their differences and explore their friendship.
Enter, Ganesh, the elephant headed Hindu god, remover of obstacles, who appears in many guises and becomes the centre around which this poignant and humorous tale revolves.
The title of the play comes from Katherine’s obsession with the Hindu God, Ganesh, and her desire to find a perfect statue of his to add to her collection of memories & experiences of this trip.
“Terrific!”
Terrence McNally
“An ambitious mixture of the epic and the intimate”
Timeout
“Indian Odyssey”
The Croydon Guardian
“Spiritual succour”
British Theatre Guide
TOUR
Wed 12 – Sat 15 March
ARTSDEPOT
5 Nether Street
Finchley N12 OGA
Thurs 18 – Thurs 20 March
CROYDON CLOCKTOWER
Katherine Street
Croydon CR9 1ET
Tues 25 – Sat 29 March
WATERMANS
40 High Street
Brentford TW8 ODS
Then tours to Peepul Centre, Leicester &
The Drum, Birmingham.
IN CONVERSATION WITH TERRENCE MCNALLY
Tuesday 11 March 2008 . The University of Westminster, 309 Regent St London
Terrence McNally’s writing credits include; Frankie and Johnny at the Claire de Lune (1987) & the screen adaptation which starred Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeiffer. He wrote the book for Kiss of the Spiderwoman (1992), a Broadway musical that won a Tony for “Best Book” the following year. McNally’s other plays include Love! Valour! Compassion! (1994) which examines the relationships of eight gay men and Master Class (1995), a character study of legendary opera soprano Maria Callas which won the 1996 Tony Award for “Best Play.”
In 1997, McNally stirred up a storm of controversy with Corpus Christi (1997), a modern day retelling of the story of Jesus’ birth, ministry, and death in which both he and his disciples are homosexuals.
A Perfect Ganesh has been made possible by arrangement with Josef Weinberger Limited. This production was developed during an Artist’s residency with Leicester Theatre Trust.
We are grateful for the generosity of the Cultural Attaché of the US Embassy to enable us to host An In Conversation with Terrence McNally.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
A Perfect Ganesh would not have been possible without the support and encouragement of several organisations and well-wishers. Phizzical Productions is indebted to:
Curve, Leicester
Matthew Cloran, Philadelphia Lesbian and Gay Theatre Festival
Sonny Goff, Theatre Decatur
Michael Callahan, Josef Weinberger Limited
Kully Thiarai
Adel Al-Salloum
Raj & Ramila Chauhan
Pushpinder Chowdhry
Harvinder Nath
Asif Masud
Jaimal Mistry
Alan Suri
Jatinder Verma
Simon Hicklin
South Asian Touring Theatre Consortium
UHY Simmonds Limited
Hitesh Rao, Rao Photo Studio
